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Employment Pathways

Catching Up With….Priscilla Pham

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Alumni Cadet, volunteer addict and all round Doxa legend Priscilla Pham is a Bachelor of Environmental Science (Environmental Management and Sustainability) from Deakin University. She completed her work placement at BP Australia and has some great ideas about making the world a better place.

What’s your favourite TV show and why?

Absolutely going to say Friends, a great comedic classic. If I ever need a good laugh I can always rely on Friends. Though I’m also a huge animation addict and have an undying love for Adventure Time. It resonates well with my inner childhood as well as some deep obstacles that we tend to face in life.

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Can you tell us about your involvement with Doxa?

Where do I even begin haha, I love Doxa and they’re my forever family. It all started from the Cadetship program where I was selected to commence my placement with BP Australia back in 2013. I’ve finished that now, but felt that Doxa and I could do so much more together. With more capacity for Cadets and Alumni to support and contribute to Doxa, I’d taken on a wide range of voluntary opportunities. I’ve helped out at a series of working bees, racing lunches, Cadetship camps and Holiday Camps in Malmsbury, University Pathways Programs and now the Future Focus program.

“What I can do now with all the skills and experiences is to give back and provide opportunities to the kids who don’t have it, who were like me when I was their age. It’s time for me to give back.”

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Priscilla (right) at Doxa Malmsbury Working Bee, March 2016

How has Doxa had an impact on you?

Doxa helped me to believe that no matter what situations happen in my life anything is achievable, all I had to do was seek the resources and support that was already there waiting for me. Doxa made me realise that I’m beyond a social construct and that family comes in all shapes and sizes. Honestly, I don’t know where I’d be now if I didn’t have Doxa there to support me at my lowest. What I can do now with all the skills and experiences is to give back and provide opportunities to the kids who don’t have it, who were like me when I was their age. It’s time for me to give back.

“Doxa helped me to believe that no matter what situations happen in my life anything is achievable.”

Name some of the things in society that matter to you?

Oh gosh, there’s so many! Here are a few key areas though:

Everything from quality living standards, to equality on every level and ensuring that everyone takes into account their responsibility for the environment.

Providing opportunities matters to me because I know that talent is existent in everyone, and if every person has that opportunity to showcase their talents and capabilities only greater things can come from that. It’s amazing what we’re capable of.

I always love to refer to the United Nations 17 Sustainability Goals that countries adopted in September 2015 as their new sustainable agenda. I can relate to all their set goals as my own and their goals are fantastic. We’re in a day and age where societies are capable of so much more.

“Providing opportunities matters to me because I know that talent is existent in everyone…”

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What’s your favourite social network and why?

Facebook is my go to and a long time buddy. It’s where I can find interesting news feeds, recipes, updates on friends and family and a great tool for global integration. I can say that half my friends aren’t Australian and I can learn so much about who they are and their culture. Snapchat is great too, it was initial peer pressure but I’ve grown fond of the filters!

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What are the top 3 things on your bucket list?

  • Travel the world, again and for longer
  • Help as many people as I can while I can
  • Exude happiness wherever I can
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Being a young board member

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Young people are awesome powerful agents of change that are sadly often mis and under-represented in society. We’d like to see more young people involved in governance, decision-making and strategy of organisations.  Our Cadet Gabrielle (Gabby) Breheny is a Board member, Chair and HR Director of the I CAN Network and offers some insights into her experience.

Getting involved in I CAN

Hey! My name is Gabby.  I am a 22-year old Cadet studying my fourth year in Psychology at Monash University. I’m also a Board member, Chair and HR Director of the I CAN Network. I CAN is Australia’s first social enterprise founded by people on the Autism spectrum, aiming to drive a ‘rethink’ of Autism in the community through mentoring, educational programs, and advocacy.

Honesty. Integrity. Autonomy.

My journey with I CAN came about through Doxa; by participating in the Cadetship program, I was offered the opportunity to attend a Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) residential camp at Malmsbury in 2013 and met founder Chris Varney who was a speaker there. I was looking for some volunteer experience and had always been a very passionate Autism advocate, so I didn’t hesitate to put my hand up to help out…and the rest is history.  I currently spend between 10 – 30 hours a week on I CAN projects, meetings and tasks. I enjoy it so much it doesn’t feel like work. I’ve been involved from the start and helped to build the culture in the organisation.

I enjoy it so much it doesn’t feel like work. I’ve been involved from the start and helped to build the culture in the organisation.

My personal values are centred around honesty, integrity and autonomy and I strive to create a positive, passionate culture at I CAN in which these values are honoured and represented.

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Why be a (young) board member?

I am super passionate about being a board member. Having young people on the Board can really help inject energy, progressive thinking and vigour to an organisation. Another element that is really important for Boards is that they maintain their company’s vision and mission.

I loved the idea of being involved in the progression of a start up from the grassroots and making it into a success story. It can be scary. Being a board member means that you are accountable for the performance of an entire company. But that just means that it has taught me to have an extra level of responsibility and diligence about how I work.

Being involved in the I CAN Network as a Board member has helped me further develop skills such as:

  • public speaking
  • facilitation
  • group leadership
  • strategy

Professional skill-building

I’ve also realised that I’m incredibly passionate about developing people and making them feel like they’re performing at their best at work they they love doing… which all ties into Human Resources. Three years ago, I would never have imagined  saying that I love Human Resources. I’ve developed some amazing personal and professional skills in:

  • presentation
  • recruitment
  • conflict resolution
  • talent management
  • training

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The most rewarding thing about being a young board member in the not-for-profit space is knowing that your decisions really do have a positive, significant impact on the lives of the people we work with.

The journey so far

Mentoring has also played a key part in my development contributing to my confidence and career direction. In addition to my work placement and mentor at the Australian Taxation Office as part of the Cadetship program, I’ve had the pleasure of being  mentored by quite a few different people in my journey, who have been invaluable. The most rewarding thing about being a young board member in the not-for-profit space is knowing that your decisions really do have a positive, significant impact on the lives of the people we work with.

Recently, a group of us attended Parliament of Victoria’s Inquiry into Services for People with Autism Spectrum Disorder which was a definite highlight in my journey so far.

Thanks to Gabby for your time and words. You can find out more about the Doxa Cadetship program here.

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10 Years | 10 Questions | Doxa School Bendigo

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The Doxa School Bendigo celebrates it’s 10th anniversary this weekend. Celebrating a decade’s worth of achievements, successes and personal greatness is pretty powerful so we had a chat with the Principal, John Russell, who has been in the hot seat since the school started in 2006.

1. So John, first things first – why do you do what you do?

I am passionate about giving young people the opportunity to be the best they can be, for themselves and the broader community.

2. How is the Doxa School Bendigo different from mainstream schools? 

Our philosophy is based around our belief in our role to facilitate change for our students. We do this through challenging them and then giving them the opportunity to make different choices than those that previously haven’t worked for them.

At the Doxa School Bendigo we place a significant emphasis on wellbeing and good mental health; our curriculum has a strong Personal Development and Emotional Literacy focus along side the normal academic program.

Our school rules – Be Responsible, Be Kind and Thoughtful, Be Fair and Be Safe – promote an environment where students feel safe and encourage a sense of belonging that enables trusting relationships.

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3. Why is providing an alternative education model important?

The educational philosophies that underpin our system in Australia is one steeped in western industrial history. The system, its institutions and our assessment and reporting models are based around a one size fits all mentality and clearly it doesn’t.

Some schools are innovative and explore new ways of learning and teaching but still alternative settings and Flexible Learning Options have a real place in providing opportunities for the ever growing numbers of young people who are unable to engage in mainstream education.

4. We came to the annual graduation evening last year. Can you tell us about the significance of this event? 

Our annual awards evenings are fantastic celebrations of our young people’s achievements through the course of the year.

One of my greatest joys is to see the excitement and pride on the faces of students as they are acknowledged. And even better the looks of pride that parents and families have when their daughter or son, sister or brother are recognised in a way that they may never have been before.

5. 10 years is a significant milestone and you’ve been at the helm the whole time. What are the biggest changes you’ve seen at the school over the last decade?

I have been at the Doxa School Bendigo since it opened in 2006 and over that time there have been some significant changes.

Our original program catered for 13 students aged 11-15 with a 6 month enrolment and a 12 month outreach follow up support program. Now we have a program that supports 46 students aged 12-18, enrolment time frames are more flexible with some students remaining for up to 3 years depending on their needs.

One thing is certain about the Doxa School Bendigo – nothing stays the same, it is a dynamic evolving environment, that’s what makes it such an interesting and challenging place to work.

6. What have been some of your favourite moments from the last 10 years?

Our awards evenings are a favourite event for me each year but there are many other moments such as the camps and excursions that have provided wonderful experiences for our students.

Often the most powerful moments come from a few words of appreciation from a student or parent, then I realise the work we do here is worthwhile and important, it really can change peoples lives.

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7. Can you tell us about some of the school’s success stories? 

There have been over 540 young people that have been enrolled at the Doxa School Bendigo over the course of our story. Many of these young people have achieved success, some back in mainstream education, some in the workforce and in other learning environments. Two ex-students I would like to mention are Lucy and Matt.

These two young people have shown that given opportunities you can change your future if you have the desire to do it.

Lucy came to us as she was a poor school attendee but she was a hard worker driven by a desire to succeed. She participated in our Hospitality program and has since left school and currently manages a café in Bendigo.

Matt joined our junior program determined to gain skills to get a job. He joined the Engineering group and developed a passion for mechanics. He was dedicated to doing work experience and eventually got a foot in the door at a local workshop. Matt was offered an apprenticeship and grabbed this opportunity with both hands. Earlier this year he was named Bendigo Kangan TAFE Automotive 1st Year Apprentice of the Year.

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8. What do you see happening for the next 10 years? 

Education is an ever-evolving industry and the impact of technology will continue to create change in the way schools are structured and the way our students learn. For the Doxa School Bendigo the changes will be around our ability to cater for individual student needs in what should be a more flexible learning environment.

9. What are the students doing to celebrate the 10thanniversary? 

Students are involved in our 10 year celebrations with the Hospitality and Cooking groups on catering duties. Some of our senior students are producing a short video presentation for the dinner on the Saturday evening and we hope to have a panel of students past and present to participate in a Q&A session on the night. One item we are organising for the celebration is a photo collage on a wall in our multi-purpose area that will have photos from the past 10 years, this will be a memento that we will have forever.

10. What plans do you have to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the school?

Our school celebrations will take place from October 14th – 16th with:

  • Open Afternoon on Friday the 14th from 2-6pm. Visitors, families, staff past and present, in fact anyone interested in coming along are invited to have a look around the school, share light refreshments, chat with staff and students and learn more about our journey over the past decade.
  • Gala Dinner on Saturday 15th at the All Seasons Resort in Bendigo. The evening is open to anyone interested in sharing this celebration with us and details can be obtained from Colleen Lingard by contacting the school on 5442 8140.
  • Sunday Mass on Sunday 16th at St Killian’s Church at 10am. Attendees will be invited back to the school for morning tea and an opportunity for our local parishioners to learn more about the work we do as one of their Parish schools.
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A Journey to Geneva: Representing Australia

If you don’t yet know Arif Hazara, then it’s time to bring you up to speed. He’s one of our Cadets, and he’s pretty amazing. Oh, and he was just selected as a youth delegate to represent Australia in the UNHCR’s negotations with NGOs in Geneva.

Arif is not just a Doxa Cadet and a student at RMIT but he is also working as Assistant Accountant at Dennis Family Corporation. Outside of the world of work, he is a powerful voice for Hazaras, refugees and asylum seekers in the Melbourne community and more recently, the international stage. We caught up with him to find out more about his experience in Geneva, and here’s what he had to say:

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UNHCR NGOs consultations

Attending Global Refugee Youth Conference (GRYC) and the Annual UNHCR NGOs consultations as youth delegate was an incredible learning experience. It was an opportunity for me to be the voice for many, realise my passion and make a positive contribution at a global level. Before leaving for Geneva I had been part of nation-wide consultations with young people in Australia. It provided the foundation for our team’s advocacy work at Geneva. I was honoured to represent young refugees and asylum seekers from the Asia-Pacific region, to make sure their inspiring stories are told and concerns heard.

“Representing young refugees was an absolute privilege. I had the opportunity to embrace challenges and push my boundaries.”

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Global Refugee Youth Conference

As we touched the ground in Geneva and the six jam-packed days began to unfold we stretched ourselves accordingly. It was inspiring, challenging and hectic. First on the agenda was the GRYC in which nearly 30 youth delegates had come to participate followed by Annual NGO Consultations and finally UNHCR Standing Committee meetings.

I co-presented the regional priority challenge, facilitated and was panelist at different thematic sessions – emphasizing on the need to acknowledge expertise of young people and providing them dedicated space (through policy making, provision of resource and structural organisational change) so that they can continue to thrive and make a difference.

“It was challenging but I realised that I could be influential.”

The Closing Plenary

For me, the highlight was delivering the closing remarks at the closing plenary of the consultations – I didn’t expect to ever experience sitting before a very large audience as I waited for my turn to speak – expectations were high and pressure mounting. During the speech I had become so emotional that I went numb for few minutes after having delivered it. I originate from a country where persecution and systematic discrimination against my community – Hazara people – is rife, where our voices are suppressed, where advocating for the vulnerable means risking your own life. It was a very big moment for me and it made me realise how far I have come.

“Five years ago, we had to sleep rough outside UNHCR office in order to be able to meet someone next morning, five years on, I was meeting their deputy director to advocate for the rights of young refugees in Geneva. It was an emotional encounter”

The Power Of Youth

Overall, the Geneva trip was an enriching experience; it was challenging and enabled me to stretch my capacity and explore the hidden “me”. It was inspiring to see talented young refugees from various parts of the world come together, share life-changing work they do and influence decision makers – I was grateful to have been one and amongst them. It was for the first time that the focus of such conversations had been “youth” which all youth delegates proved through their active participation why this should continue to be. This is the power of youth.

Find out more about Arif in his digital storytelling episode “Stories of Greatness: Arif Hazara”

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Adventurous Minds at TEDxMelbourne

The theme for TEDxMelbourne 2016 was “adventurous minds”. Curated by Doxa supporter and speaker Jon Yeo the event brought together some of the brightest minds, innovative ideas and rad  people in Melbourne for one day. We were in attendance and thought it would be helpful to share our top 3 talks with you, what we learnt from them and how we could apply this to our work at Doxa.

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“More than we appear” – Jade Hameister

Jade was on stage for the first TED talk of the day which was a bold programming choice and set the tone for the “Adventurous Minds” conference. She spoke confidently and passionately about issues facing young women, how to conquer fear, push possibilities and exceed expectations. The talk resonated with me as facing fear, challenging the status quo and pushing the boundaries of experience are all things I personally really value in life. Jade was one of the most powerful speakers of the day; what a fantastic role model for young people, particularly young women. At Doxa we support young people in achieving personal greatness, so let’s get inspired by Jade and continue to back our young people, our young women and encourage them to be bold, brave and brilliant every day.

– Belinda Rowse, Public Relations Officer

Lets commit to take one step forward in our thinking and our expectations as to what young women can achieve…We must have courage. We must be prepared and willing to fail.

“Gifts in shitty wrapping paper” – Jules Allen

Jules Allen delivered the TEDx talk which resonated with me the most. Jules is a leading youth advocate and foster carer for 32 children over the years. Jules spoke from the heart about the change that needs to occur in the way we approach how we cope with the hardships and cruel blows life deals us. Her powerful speech addressed the shortcomings of simply focusing on building resilience and proposed the key ingredient missing when assisting people through these challenges was acceptance. When grief is unshakable and people found it difficult to move forward in life, we all need to be more accepting of the curve balls in life and to move forward because of them, not despite them. Her words will hopefully equip me for the inevitable tough moments in life which challenge us to the core.

– Pip Macdonald, Cadetship Lead

In society we are taught there are them and us. The ones you’re encouraged not to play with, working in those jobs, going to those schools. We judge. Challenge that judgement. There is no them and us, only us.

“Souffles, gymnasts and the workplace of the future” – Dr Agustin Chevez

Dr Agustin Chevez took a simple, boring question “how many people can fit in an office?” and brought it to life. I couldn’t believe that such a boring subject could become something so full of wonder. His creative approach to a simple idea brings problem solving to a whole new level – and I certainly hope I can apply this to my work in turn.

– Dan Gibney, Brand & Communications Coordinator

The number of people that fit inside a building might be as uninspiring as 42, but the reason why I think this adventure is so exciting, is because the path to finding that number is the same path to understand what makes us us.

Get inspired by a multitude of adventurous minds and ideas in these TEDxMelbourne talks 

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Why you want young people in the workplace

We work with some amazing individuals. They’re smart, they’re skilled, they’re the ones you want on your team. What’s more, they’ve got a refreshing and innovative approach to work. Some of them are even getting offered casual roles alongside their studies via their Cadetship placements. 

Young people are an important resource

We’re a bit biased, but it’s true: young people are an increasingly important resource in the workplace. They have great ideas, fresh approaches, open minds and they represent the future. Let’s take our Cadet Ellen Lu for example. Ellen is a 2nd year Cadet completing her work placement with PwC‘s People & Org – International Assignment Solutions (IAS) team. She has also recently been offered a casual role alongside her studies.

Her PwC Coach Kerry, who works closely with her says:

Ellen is a highly sought after resource within our team – in fact, the team will hold onto tasks specifically for Ellen.

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Pioneering of a new way of thinking and working

The great advantage of having young people as part of your workforce is that they bring a new approach, alternative ideas and less of the biases and prejudices that we can inherit as we get older. Coupled with that, young people are well versed in the technical world with great digital skills, creative and critical ways of thinking, flexibility and an approach to cope with the rapidly changing world around us.

Ellen has a positive attitude, flexible approach to her work and proactive workflow management skills.  In addition, she brings a fresh perspective and is open in communicating her ideas for improvement.  We are constantly transforming the way in which we service our clients, and fresh insights are always greatly appreciated.

Diversity, digital curiosity, collaboration, creativity and innovation

A diverse work team is a strong work team. And young people are a diverse group in terms of their background, culture and socioeconomic status. Ellen’s coach Kerry also acknowledged this:

We achieve the greatest success when all of our team members are motivated, engaged and willing to communicate their ideas on how we can continually improve. A diverse range of staff ensures that we are providing the best possible solutions for all our clients.

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The great thing about all this is that the recruitment of Ellen via the Cadetship program has created a precedent for a new chapter for PwC’s talent acquisition which is pretty awesome. Her coach Kerry says:

This is the first time our team has taken on a Doxa Cadet and it has changed the way we think about recruiting junior staff.  The Doxa program plays a vital role in connecting high calibre, highly motivated young people with great professional development opportunities.  Given how positive our experience has been with Ellen, we will certainly take on more Doxa Cadets in future.

Thanks to Kerry, Ellen and the PwC team for their ongoing support of Doxa’s Cadetship program.

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Writing an awesome resume

Getting on the road to employment can be really tough, so we’ve asked the experts what they think makes the big difference. The third part of our series shares some helpful hints to write an awesome resume from Ernst & Young. 

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Learning about resume writing and practicing new skills at Ernst & Young, July 2016

Resume writing… at some point we’ve all got to do it. And we’ve got to keep on doing it throughout our careers, adapting it to new opportunities, including new experiences, shaping it so it lands you that dream job. The thing is, what makes an awesome resume? There’s lots of confusing and often conflicting advice out there coming from a wide range of sources. Ultimately, it really depends on what industry you’re aiming for; a graphic designer’s resume is going to look pretty different from an accountant’s. Or at least, we hope it would!

We’ve teamed up with our partners at Ernst & Young, who hosted a fantastic session on resume writing as part of our recent 3-day residential University Pathways Program for Year 10 students, to give you some top tips and helpful hints to make your resume an awesome one.

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What’s HOT

Bearing in mind that many are at the very beginning of their road to employment, the Ernst & Young (EY) crew were keen to emphasize the importance of  having a diversity of skills and experiences in order to impress the top dogs. Showcasing your volunteering or part time work alongside your studies is a really good way of demonstrating what transferable skills you can offer to a future employer.

They dropped these pearls of essential wisdom in order to create a bang tidy resume:-

      • What to include – personal info, work experience, career goals, extra-curricular volunteering, student societies, sports – employers love to see a diversity of of experiences. Just make sure they’re relevant – playing PokemonGo! probably isn’t the best thing to put on there!

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    • Do your homework – read up on the company’s values, ideas and work so that you can mirror language, skills and ideas in your resume and prove to them that you are proactive and suitable for the role.
    • Match your resume – fit your resume to the job description, comparing and linking to your own personal experiences. If you want to earn extra brownie points, make sure you develop any skills where there are gaps – it’ll look super impressive and give you something to talk about in an interview.
    • Proofread answers – check for any typos or bad grammar; creating a good first impression is very important and many people get let down by a lack of attention to detail like this.
    • Be clear, concise and honest – don’t over-complicate things, apply the KISS principle (KeepItSimpleStupid) at all times and don’t get caught out later down the line or in an interview by embellishing too much!
    • Update regularly – make sure you update your resume after every new experience or project whilst it’s fresh in your mind – this will save you time later down the line and ensures you have an accurate record of your experience to date.
    • Active words – start each dot point with an active word like “created” or “implemented” – it sounds more dynamic.

What’s NOT

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However they were NOT so hot on a few things:-

  • Coloured fonts – deemed unprofessional and distracting. Bear in mind that this is just Ernst & Young and this is not definitive. If you’re in a more creative field, then coloured fonts and graphic design features might be just the thing to demonstrate your creative flair. But for many of you who are applying for jobs in traditional areas, then listening to the wise words of Ernst & Young is probably a winner.
  • Photos – again, this often a case of personal preference but Ernst & Young definitely weren’t keen on seeing your latest selfie!
  • Dates of birth – removing your age from a resume is a good idea as it also removes any conscious or unconcious bias associated with your age, level of expertise and thus suitability for the role.
  • Spelling errors / long sentences – a big no no for all the obvious reasons. Resumes need to be clear, concise and easy to read for the recruiter. Spelling areas shout sloppy and long sentences are complicated to read.

Thanks to Ernst & Young for hosting the interview session for our University Pathways Program. 

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How to ace your first interview

Getting on the road to employment can be really tough, so we’ve asked the experts what they think makes the big difference. The second part of our series shares some wise words and interview advice from Ernst & Young to help you ace your first interview. 

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Interview advice from Ernst & Young

As part of the University Pathways Program we visited Big 4 firm EY (Ernst & Young) with a bunch of Year 10 students who are just sussing out how to navigate the confusing maze of life to get on the road to university and meaningful employment. To kick things in this two part session, we were taken to Level 23 with panoramic views of the city symbolically setting off the scene.

UPP participants at Level 23, EY, Melbourne CBD

UPP participants at Level 23, EY, Melbourne CBD

The first session was all about interview skills and how to sharpen up your tool kit in preparation for any future interviews, be they for a part time job, a university position or that first grad role on the far horizon.

According to our pals at EY there are two types of interview most commonly used to select awesome new candidates for roles in a company; they are discussion based and behavioural based interviews. We’ll give you a run down of each along with some hot tips on how to ace your first interview.

Discussion based interviews

Discussion based interviews centre around talking about you and include questions around your resume, work experience, goals and motivations. An example question might be something like “so tell me more about your weekend role at Coles?” or “you say you are motivated by personal development opportunities, why is this?”

This means you will have to brush up on your personal story, experience, career goals and be ready to talk about them and answer any interrogative questions about anything you’ve included on your resume.

Some hot tips for acing a discussion based interview are:-

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  • Know your resume: this one’s pretty simple, but very crucial. Familiarise yourself with what you’ve included, why you’ve included it and be able to talk confidently and competently about it.  Remember it’s all about telling your personal story.
  • Link your skills to the position description: make sure you are the ideal candidate for the role by mirroring language, skills and key words from the position description and talk about these in the interview.
  • Answer questions completely: make sure your replies are comprehensive and cover all aspects of the question.
  • Sell yourself: this is your moment to shine and to show off all that is wonderful and amazing about your personal and professional skills in order to persuade the interviewer to hire you. Talk up your experiences and ideas. Be your own cheerleader.
  • Know what you want: set clear objectives about what you want from the role and why you are applying. You will be asked about this!
  • Silence is OK! this is self-explanatory but honestly, don’t feel the need to fill every gap with words. A well thought out answer is always better than a hurried one. If you need time to think just say “please could I have a moment to think”.
Group work during UPP session, July 2016

Group work during UPP session, July 2016

Behavioural based interviews

Behavioural based interviews use past experiences to predict future behaviour.  The interviewer will ask you to talk about your experiences, share an anecdote where you have demonstrated certain skills skills or ask how you have reacted to a particular situation. An example question might be something like “can you tell us about a time when you demonstrated great leadership skills?” or “how would you respond to a difficult and uncooperative team member?”

This means you will have to think of some good examples of where, when and how you demonstrated key skills before the interview – these may come from professional situations, school, part time work or volunteering opportunities.

Some hot tips for acing a behavioural based interview:

        • Find a relevant example of skills used to obtain an outcome: go through your resume and pick out your key skills, then think about some examples or situations you were in where you really demonstrated them to other people.
        • Use a variety of examples to draw from: be sure to have a range of situations up your sleeve; talking about that one time at your part time job which demonstrated teamwork, negotiating, using initiative and everything else under the sun, will not show the diversity of your experience!
        • Give detail  but keep it concise: there’s a balance between setting the scene and going into painful detail. Practice with someone else in order to get the balance right.
        • Use STAR technique: this is a great way of getting all the details in. STAR stands for Situation you were in Tasks required Action taken in response to situation Result of the action taken)

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Thanks to Ernst & Young for hosting the interview session for our University Pathways Program. 

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How to be a personal branding machine

Getting on the road to employment can be really tough, so we’ve asked the experts what they think makes the big difference. The first part of our series is about personal branding. 

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What is personal branding?

Does it matter? How do I use it to my advantage? These are all questions that might come up for you. James Freemantle from Red Gum Communications has the answers! He recently shared his ideas, approaches and top tips in an engaging and dynamic workshop at NAB Village with a group of curious Year 10 UPP students.

So, let’s think about branding. The definition of a brand is the promise of providing a consistent experience to a consumer. Personal branding isn’t too dissimilar. James explains personal branding as the alignment of the way you present yourself with the way others experience you. There are three ways of communicating: visually, verbally and vocally. All are equally important in terms of defining an interaction, a relationship and in defining individuals. To demonstrate this, the students participated in an activity where they had to deliver a word with an action and correct voice tone in order to deliver the word with impact and sincerity.

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James Freemantle, Red Gum Communications presentation; align your visual, vocal and verbal messages.

Does it matter?

In one word: YES! The choices we make with our body, face and voice have a big impact on those around us. How do you cause other people to feel when they meet you? How do they remember you? How can you take control of the impression people have of you? How do you WANT to be experienced?

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How can I use it to my advantage?

When you’re meeting someone for the first time, think about your habits of communication that create an impression of who you are, make someone remember you or to take action as a result of interacting with you. Think about what you can do to make this a better experience. In addition to this, think about your default response to a particular situation.  Pretty confronting hey? But really useful in order to hone your personal brand and create a good impression. Other tips that James was keen to highlight to the students for maximum effect were body language, breath and voice as these are all things that influence outcomes.

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UPP participants, team leaders and staff at NAB Village with James Freemantle, July 2016

Action & feeling goals

We’re about to get serious and talk about goal setting but this is important. We’re going to think about action goals and feeling goals. So first things first, let’s get things clear: an action goal is something you want to achieve in the short term. A feeling goal is the emotional context of the action goal or how you will feel when your action goal has been reached.

Imagine if you were going for a job interview – your action goal might be to create a positive, memorable impression and your feeling goal would then be feeling connected to the interviewer and having your comments affirmed with body language.

Have a think about how YOU can put all these ideas into practice and refine your own personal branding and use it to achieve greatness and success.

James Freemantle works for Red Gum Communications and is a personal branding expert.

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NYW 2016: Shelley Fenech’s advice for juggling university life

Advice and guidance for juggling university life from Shelley Fenech

The third in our National Youth Week 2016 blog series, where young people in our programs provide an insight into some of their amazing experiences.

Before you decide whether to read on – I must tell you that what I am about to say may save your sanity.

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University can be as busy or laidback as you want. But for when times get tough there’s some things you can do to help reduce your stress levels.

About Me

My name is Shelley Fenech, and I’m a third year university student. If you’re about to start university, or even if you already have, then the mistakes I have made along my academic journey will not be in vain because I can briefly share with you my story.

I have always liked being a busy person. However in 2015, for my second year of university, life became beyond hectic. To make things simple, here’s a list of what I was doing:

  • Full time university
  • Volunteering at the SES (where I took on an admin role as well as being an ordinary member)
  • 8 weeks of work experience ay my sponsor company through my cadetship with Doxa
  • Working at my casual job

I even successfully applied for an internship which meant on my mid-year holiday I was working 7 days a week. Madness! I had no time for myself, and this eventually led me into a dark period of depression. I no longer enjoyed the things I used to, and hardly cared about anything I did anymore.

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Becoming too busy can be detrimental to your health.

It was a really tough time for me, and it’s taken a lot of work to get me back to where I am now. That’s enough sadness for one piece! So, to ensure that you don’t endure what I did I’ve created a guide to keep your life well-balanced and happy. If you adopt even one or two things into your weekly rhythm it will do wonders.

Listen to the Home Slow Podcast

Brooke McAlary created and hosts the show, which is an amazing listen. She teaches you how to declutter and slow down your life. Listening to these episodes gave me the strength to take leave from my SES unit while I’m at uni.

Practice Mindfulness and/or Meditation

I cannot stress how important this is. Being self-aware is incredibly beneficial to your health, both mentally AND physically! Practicing mindfulness actually physically reshapes your brain for the better. There are loads of other benefits that I can’t fit here, so check out headspace.com/science. There are many apps that you can find to practice mindfulness, but I use the Smiling Mind.

Take up a hobby!

This could be anything like the trendy new adult colouring in books, or something as simple as knitting. Find something that you can do that takes your mind off your worries. The great thing about a lot of hobbies is you can do it while watching lectures! I like to take photos of sunsets and edit them – which led me to accidentally capture this awesome lightening photo!

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Captured in my town whilst on a jog

Read ‘How To Stay Sane’ by Philippa Perry

She’s an amazing psychoanalyst who has taught me to question my motives. Am I doing something to impress others or because it makes me happy? An amazing read that’s pretty short.

Go on a holiday!

I don’t think there’ll be many complaints here! Holidays are a great way to reboot.

Become physically healthy

Look, I know, exercise. It’s not for everyone. I have purposely not titled this recommendation as ‘Exercise’ because you don’t have to break a huge sweat to help your body feel better. Try yoga, or going for walks with friends or family. Foam rolling is also an amazing way to increase your flexibility and recover from exercise. And if you do it for long enough it feels like a great massage! You can pick up a foam roller for a cheap price at stores like Kmart or Big W.

Don’t cut off from family & friends

I don’t mean to say that you’ll cut off the people you love on purpose. It’s just something that can happen when you’re busy. Make sure to schedule in some time for the people who care about you. Phone call, quick coffee or skype call – whatever you can manage!

Keep track

You can do this through a diary or some kind of time management app. However, rather than just scheduling in work, assignments and other mundane things here’s a couple of things to also keep track of. To decrease negative self talk, write a positive thing about yourself for every negative thought you have. At the end of some days, write down something that happened that day. It can be interesting and fun to look back at the small things you forgot happened.
Those are just some of the things that can help you to maintain a lifestyle that isn’t detrimental to your health. I wish you the best of luck in everything that you do, and hope that you will undertake some of the recommendations that have helped me!

Go forth and be happy,
Shelley.

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